Card holder and exhibitor



Dec. 6, 1955 l. L. HORWIN CARD HOLDER AND EXHIBITOR Filed April 13, 1953 INVENTOR /57D0)P law/s fiomw/v BY Mk7 Aria/vi:

United States Patent CARD HOLDER AND EXHIBITOR Isidore. Lewis Horwin, Philadelphia, Pa. Application April 13, 1953, Serial No. 348,458 2 Claims. (Cl. 150--39) The present invention relates to improvements in card holdersand exhibitors for receiving fiat sheets of printed material, such as, for example, menus, certificates, licenses and other similar articles which are extensively handled, to protect the printedmaterial while exposing it to view.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a card holder andexhibitor of the described character constructed to facilitate the insertion and removal of the printedmaterial so that the latter can be easily replaced, as, for example, when the card holder and exhibitor is used for protecting a menu which is changed daily.

Another object is to provide a card holder and exhibitor of the-described character which is adapted to expose the opposite faces of a flat sheet of printed material to view.

In accordance with the present invention, the above, and other objects, features and'advantages thereof, are achieved by, providing a card holder and exhibitor-which includes two rectangular and coextensive protective sheets of a material which, while it may be flexible or resilient, has suflicient rigidity to return to, or retain, its original shape. The material of at least one. of the sheets is transparent, and the sheets are secured together along three of the sides thereof so that the fourth side defines an opening through which the printed material may be inserted and removed. The side edge portions of at least one of the sheets which extend along at least the sides at right angles to the open sides are offset toward the other of the sheets so that the internal surfaces of the sheets are spaced apart, at least along the sides at right angles to the open side, and the frictional resistance to insertion or removal of the printed material is substantially minimized. In one embodiment of the invention, only the side edge portions of one sheet along the sides at right angles to the open side are offset; in another embodiment, all side edge portions of one sheet with the exception of the open side are offset; and in still another embodiment, the side edge portions of both sheets, with the exception of the open side, are offset toward each other to provide the desired spacing apart of the sheets at the secured together sides thereof.

In order that the invention may be fully understood, illustrative embodiments thereof will be hereinafter described in detail and are shown in the accompanying drawing, forming a part hereof, and wherein:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a card holder and exhibitor embodying the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line 2-2 of Fig. 1 and on an enlarged scale;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along the line 3-3 of Fig. l and on an enlarged scale;

Fig. 4 is a plan view of a card holder and exhibitor constructed in accordance with another embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 5 is a sectional view along the line 55 of Fig. 4

and on an enlarged scale;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary sectional view takenalong-the line 6-6 of Fig. 4 and on an enlarged scale; and

Fig. 7 is a view similar to Fig. 3, but showing still another embodiment of the invention.

Referring to the drawing in detail, and initially to Figs. 1, 2 and 3 thereof, the reference numeral 10 is employed for generally indicating a cardholder and exhibitor constructed inaccordance with the present invention. The card holder and exhibitor 10 includes two rectangular-and coextensive sheets 12 and 14, with atleast one, and preferably both, of these sheets being formed of a transparent material which, while it may be flexible and 'resilient, has suflicient rigidity to return to, or retain, its original shape. The sheets may be formed of any transparent and resilient thermoplastic material, such as,ifor

example, cellulose acetate, methyl methacrylate and the like.

In accordance with the present invention, at least two of the opposite side edge portions of at least one of the sheets 12 and 14 are offset relative to the remainder of the sheet so that, when the sheets are superposed, these offset side edge portions will serve to space apart the sheets. Thus, in the embodiment of Figs. 1, 2 and 3, the opposite side edge portions 16 and 18 of the sheet 12 are offset relative to the remainder of that sheet (Fig. 2) and, when the sheets 12 and 14 are superposed, the offset side edge portions 16 and 18 bear against the corresponding side edge portions 24 and 22 of the sheet 14 so that the sheets 12 and 14 are spaced apart at least along the sides corresponding to the edge portions 16 and 18. The side edge portions 16 and 13 can be offset relative to the remainder of the sheet 12 merely. by sub jecting the latter to suitable heat and pressure in a-conventional die press or roller arrangement.

In order to provide an envelope'or holder for a sheet of printed material, the side edge portions 16 and 18 are respectively secured to the side edge portions 20 and 22, and one end edge portion 24 of the sheet 12 is secured to the corresponding end edge portion 26 of the sheet 14 (Fig. 3), thereby leaving the opposite end edges of the sheets free of each other to define an open end 28 through which the printed material can be inserted and removed. In the illustrated embodiment, the secured together edge portions are encased in suitable binding tape 30, which may be formed of leather, fabric and the like, and stitching 32 extends through the tape 30 and the edge portions 16 and 20, 18 and 22, and 24 and 26 to secure together these edge portions. However, it is to be understood that the tape 30 and stitching 32 may be eliminated and that the edge portions of the sheets may be secured together by a suitable adhesive applied therebetween or by the application of heat and pressure to effect molecular adhesion at the confronting surfaces of the secured together edge portions.

It is apparent that in the embodiment described above the sheets 12 and 14 are spaced apart at least along the secured together side edge portions (Fig. 2) extending at right angles to the open end 28 so that there is little frictional resistance to the insertion or removal of a card or sheet of printed material through the open end. Thus, the card holder and exhibitor 10 may be employed to protect a menu with the opposite faces of the latter being visible through the sheets 12 and 14, and the menu can be easily replaced by reason of the offset side edge portions 16 and 18.

While only the side edge portions 16 and 18 of the sheet 12 are offset in the embodiment illustrated in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, it is apparent that a card holder and exhibitor constructed in accordance with the present invention may also have the secured end edge portion of at least one of the sheets offset relative to the remainder of that sheet so that the superposed sheets are spaced apart along all of the secured together edge portion. Thus, in Fig. 7, a modification of the embodiment of Figs. 1, 2 and 3 is illustrated and the end edge portion 24a is offset relative to the remainder of the sheet 12a and bears against the end edge portion 26a of the flat sheet 14a with the edge portions 24a and 26a being secured together, for example, by the binding tape 30a.

While only one sheet of the card holder and exhibitor of Figs. 1, 2 and 3 and Fig. 7 has the edge portions offset, it is to be understood that both of the sheets 12 and 14 can be formed with offset edge portions. Thus, in the embodiment of the invention illustrated in Figs. 4, and 6, the holder and exhibitor 10b includes two superposed sheets 12b and 14b, and the three edge portions 16b, 18b and 24b of the sheet 12b and the edge portions 20b, 22b and 26b of the sheet 14b are all ofiset. The sheets 12b and 14b are superposed with the offset edge portions abutting against each other to space apart the sheets along the side edges and one of the end edges. Finally, the ofiset edge portions of the sheets are secured together, for example, by binding tape 30b and stitching 32b, and the free end edges of the sheets define an opening or entrance 28b through which a flat sheet of printed material can be inserted and removed. It is apparent that, when the edge portions of both sheets making up the card holder and exhibitor are offset, as in Figs. 4, 5 and 6, the depth of the offset of each sheet need be only one half the depth of the otfset of the one sheet in the embodiments of Figs. 1, 2 and 3 and Fig. 7. It will be appreciated that the depth of the offset, Whether in only one of the sheets or in both sheets, depends upon the thickness of the fiat card which is to be accommodated in the holder, and preferably is greater than the thickness of the card in order to permit ready insertion and removal of the card.

From the foregoing, it is apparent that the present invention provides a card holder and exhibitor for protecting a flat sheet having printed material thereon, such as, for example, a menu, license or certificate and the like, and which is constructed to permit viewing of both sides of the protected material while facilitating the insert and removal of the latter through the open end.

While illustrative embodiments of the invention have been shown and described in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to these precise embodiments, and that various changes and modifications can be efiected therein, by a person skilled in the art, without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention, as defined in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A card holder and exhibitor comprising two coextensive and rectangular sheets formed of substantially rigid material adapted to retain its shape, at least one of said sheets being transparent, and means securing together said sheets along the edges at the opposite sides and one end thereof so that the edges at the other end define an entrance for the insertion and removal of a card, edge portions of at least one of said sheets being permanently offset at least along the sides thereof relative to the remainder of the respective sheet in the direc tion toward the other of said sheets, the amount of said offset being sufficient so that said two sheets are spaced apart at least along the opposite side edges thereof by a distance slightly greater than the thickness of a card to be accommodated therebetween to facilitate the insertion and removal of a card through said entrance.

2. A card holder and exhibitor according to claim 1; wherein said securing means includes binding tape extending around the edge portions of said sheets at the opposite sides and said one end thereof, and stitching securing together said binding tape and said edge portions at the opposite sides and said one end of the sheets.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 405,874 Collins June 25, 1889 761,119 Weston May 31, 1904 1,585,051 Skoglund May 18, 1926 1,670,343 Clemens May 22, 1928 2,493,409 Knee Jan. 3, 1950 

